Her mother died giving birth to her. Her father did not want the baby that had murdered his wife. So, her grandmother took custody of her and raised her. Unfortunately, her grandmother grew ill when the little girl was only six years old. After two years of fighting the illness, her grandmother passed. She was taken into foster care and bounced around a bit before they finally tracked down her next of kin. She wasn't sure why her uncle agreed to take her since he hated her so much. Why didn't he just let her stay in the foster system until someone adopted her, or she turned eighteen? She had no idea. All she knew was that she met her uncle not long after she turned nine years old, and he had been using her as a punching bag for the past five years. He must have seen her as a murderer, too. After all, it was his sister that had died. A new kid at school takes an interest in her, claiming to want to be her friend. Skeptical, she agrees to meet him the next day so they can walk to the bus together. She begins to open up to him, certain he will run away once he knows of her circumstances. Will her new "friend" be able to help her survive her uncle's abuse? Why does he seem to know so much about her? ...and where is that sound coming from?

A prequel to Journey to the Place She Belongs, The Orphan Soldier is a story of Zayd's upbringing. Zayd has a unique ability, even amongst his own kind. This sets him apart from others and often causes him to seek solitude. Luckily, a couple of people from the orphanage take an interest in him and help him to nurture his abilities rather than suppress them as he is expected to do. However, Zayd's fortune might be taking a turn for the worse now that people higher up have discovered his abilities and plan to use them for their own agendas.